As is known, stereoscopic photographs are used for a variety of purposes such as, for example, advertising, visual inspection of articles, cartography, etc. Various systems exist for taking three-dimensional photographs including, for example, the most well known one of the taking of two pictures from different angles through lenses with different color filters and the provision to the viewer of lenses of different colors to match them.
Other systems are typified by patents such as Wah et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,086,585 which utilizes a plurality of cameras located side by side on the same image plane with the lens of each camera directed straight ahead and each camera takes a slightly different picture of an object depending on the field of view of its lens. Since the cameras are spaced apart, the optical center of the picture is not the same for each camera. Accordingly, distortion can occur.
Another prior art arrangement, for example as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,491,669 to McBride, uses a plurality of cameras which are spaced around an arc with the central focal line of each camera's lens passing through the center of the object whose picture is to be taken. This arrangement also has a problem in producing angular distortion.
The present invention relates to a novel method and apparatus for taking three-dimensional pictures of an object in which a plurality of cameras are used, or a single camera is operated sequentially on a side by side basis, to take a plurality of separate pictures of the same object. Each of the cameras, or single camera, has its film negative located on a straight line passing through the image plane of each camera at a different position. In accordance with the invention, the lens of each camera, depending upon its position relative to the object whose photograph is to be taken, is shifted relative to the film image plane of the camera so that it has the same field of view with the same field of view extremities relative to the object and the same focus point on the object relative to a line from the center of the lens. Upon development and processing of the series of film negatives taken with the system, a three-dimensional picture with a minimum amount of distortion is obtained.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for taking three-dimensional photographs.
A further object is to provide a method and apparatus for taking three-dimensional pictures in which a plurality of photographs of the object are taken from different points along a straight line along which the image plane of the camera, or each of a plurality of cameras, lie.
An additional object is to provide a method and apparatus for producing three-dimensional photographs which includes an arrangement for using one or more cameras to take photographs of the same object from different spaced locations along a line with the same field of view and same object focus point.
Another object is to provide a novel camera in which the lens can be shifted in a plane spaced from and parallel to the image plane of the camera.
A further object is to provide a camera arrangement for taking three-dimensional photographs of an object in which the camera body and lens can be shifted relative to one another.